Archive for the 'Kevin O Neill' Tag Under 'USC' Category

That’s Andy Enfield’s record in Pac-12 games in his two seasons as USC coach. It’s just unfathomable. Even when they went 1-17 in conference play under Kevin O’Neill in 2012, the Trojans were 10-8 the year before and 9-9 the year after. There’s no excuse – youth, rebuilding, sanctions fallout, whatever – for a team in Los Angeles with excellent facilities to be that bad. Like Athletic Director Pat Haden, I don’t believe in firing the coach at the first sign of trouble. Based on my recent conversation with Haden, I believe Enfield will get at least one more year. But he has to win. It’s a make-or-break season. Things obviously can’t continue like this, with minimal victories, a near-empty arena and no buzz whatsoever.

2. Something in reserve

Despite not playing particularly well – and losing Jordan McLaughlin to a potentially serious left-shoulder injury – USC somehow had a chance to tie Oregon in the final minute. As has happened all too often this season, the Trojans didn’t take advantage of the opportunity. Kahlil Dukes rushed up a 3-pointer that missed, and that was pretty much it. It’s a shame, because Dukes and Chass Bryan – two seldom-used guards – sparked USC’s second-half comeback with their hustle and energy. They played with a sense of desperation the rest of the Trojans need to play with from start to finish. I didn’t feel that sense of urgency at the beginning of the game, when USC fell behind by double digits. That’s as baffling as Enfield’s Pac-12 record.

3. Point, counterpoint

Julian Jacobs was far and away USC’s best player Wednesday night, scoring a career-high 18 points to go along with six assists and six rebounds. The sophomore guard attacked the basket relentlessly, using his athleticism to get to the rim and/or create opportunities for his teammates. Unfortunately, like so many of the rest of the Trojans, Jacobs is maddeningly inconsistent. He has scored at least 16 points in four Pac-12 games – and four or fewer in five games. Jacobs will have to take on a bigger role if McLaughlin is out for any length of time. Jacobs has proved he can run the point if called upon. He just hasn’t proved he can do it on a nightly basis.

Bob Cantu, who served as USC's interim basketball coach last season after a long run as an assistant, has been hired at UTEP as an assistant under Coach Tim Floyd.

Cantu spent 12 years as a USC assistant, including a four-year run with Floyd from 2005-09, and was retained by Floyd's successor, Kevin O'Neill. When O'Neill got fired last January, Cantu took over as interim coach, and the Trojans went 7-8 under his direction.

USC hired Andy Enfield in April, and Enfield decided not to retain Cantu.

Now there's a reunion in El Paso. Floyd has a 40-27 record in three seasons at UTEP, and his staff also includes former USC assistant Phil Johnson.

There's a chance that USC and UTEP could meet this season. Both teams are in the ''Battle 4 Atlantis'' tournament on Thanksgiving weekend in the Bahamas, but they are on opposite sides of the bracket. USC would have to beat Villanova and either Kansas or Wake Forest, while UTEP would have to beat Tennessee and either Xavier or Iowa.

It was a dismal end to the regular season for USC's basketball team, which shot 33.9 percent from the field and got outrebounded by a wide margin in a 76-51 road loss to Washington State on Saturday afternoon.

The Trojans finished with a 14-17 overall record, including 9-9 in the Pac-12 Conference, good for seventh place. The Trojans now head to the conference tournament in Las Vegas, with a first-round game against 10th-place Utah (13-17, 5-13) on Wednesday at 6 p.m. at the MGM Grand arena.

USC beat Utah 76-59 on the road in the teams' only meeting this season, on Jan. 12. Coach Kevin O'Neill was fired two days later and replaced by Bob Cantu. If the Trojans beat the Utes on Wednesday, they will face second-place Cal (20-10, 12-6) on Thursday at 6 p.m.

USC's J.T. Terrell scored 18 points and shot 7 of 15 from the field, but his teammates were a combined 12 of 41 from the field. Washington State's Brock Motum had 31 points and 10 rebounds as the Cougars (13-18, 4-14) outrebounded the Trojans 43-28.

Riding its first three-game winning streak of the season, USC's basketball team will have a solid ''heat-check'' game tonight when the Trojans play at Stanford at 8 p.m. (ESPNU).

The Trojans (11-13, 6-5) are locked in a tie with Stanford (15-9, 6-5), Cal and Colorado for fifth place in the Pac-12 Conference. USC is coming off victories over UCLA, Washington State and Washington, and now faces a Stanford team that has won four of its last five games.

For a preview look at tonight's game, here are a couple stories. First, a feature on interim Coach Bob Cantu, who is making a name for himself since replacing Kevin O'Neill last month. Also, a midweek basketball notebook that tackles the question of who will fill the minutes of Ari Stewart, who broke his thumb last Sunday against Washington...

Is there any doubt that USC's basketball team is better under interim Coach Bob Cantu than under his predecessor, Kevin O'Neill? It's not that Cantu has moved mountains -- the Trojans are 2-3 under his watch -- but in many areas they have appeared to be a better-prepared, more-efficient team. Now, Cantu has a signature victory, as USC beat UCLA 75-71 in overtime Wednesday night at Pauley Pavilion.

Things are rarely easy or simple for USC basketball, so naturally the Trojans lost all of a 15-point second-half lead and needed an extra period to knock back the Bruins. There were a number of heroes for the Trojans, among them...

Aaron Fuller stepped up, after early foul trouble by Dewayne Dedmon and Omar Oraby, and had a fantastic first half. Fuller made his first six shots from the field and finished with 15 points and six rebounds (including four offensive rebounds) in 23 minutes. Fuller, who is shorter but has better hands and feet than USC's other post players, allowed USC to attack the basket in a way they rarely have this season.

This has the feel of a make-or-break week for USC's basketball team, which has road games against three top Pac-12 Conference teams: Arizona State (tonight), Arizona (Saturday) and UCLA (next Wednesday).

The Trojans (8-11, 3-3) are heading into their second weekend of games under interim Coach Bob Cantu, who took over for Kevin O'Neill last week. USC has shown subtle signs of improvement. The Trojans lost by two points to a strong Oregon team last week, then beat Oregon State.

Can the Trojans keep it going? It won't be easy, against three teams that enter tonight's game with a combined conference record of 12-4, but players such as Byron Wesley and J.T. Terrell seem to have new life under Cantu, the longtime assistant coach who is stressing more offensive freedom and aggressiveness.

Here's a preview look at USC's two upcoming games, followed by an interview with Cantu...

Bob Cantu waited 12 years to record his first victory as a college basketball head coach, so he didn't mind sweating out a tight, final-minutes stretch against Oregon State last night. Cantu, who replaced Kevin O'Neill and became USC's interim coach on Monday morning, led the Trojans to a 69-68 victory over the Beavers at Galen Center after Aaron Fuller's game-winning layup with 4.8 seconds remaining. Here's my story from this morning's Register...

Bob Cantu's first challenge as USC basketball's interim coach certainly isn't an easy one. Cantu, who took charge on Monday after USC fired fourth-year coach Kevin O'Neill, will lead the Trojans against No. 21 Oregon tonight at 8 p.m. at Galen Center (televised on ESPNU).

Cantu, 38, has been a USC assistant coach for 12 years, and he takes over a USC team that has a 7-10 overall record and is off to a respectable 2-2 start in Pac-12 Conference play. The Trojans will learn a lot more about themselves tonight.

Oregon is 14-2 and, last Thursday, recorded a huge four-point victory over conference favorite Arizona. The Ducks' only losses have come to a top-25 Cincinnati team in late November and to UTEP in triple overtime (a team coached by former USC coach Tim Floyd).

The Ducks are extremely balanced. They have five players who average 10.1 to 11.8 points per game, led by freshman guard Damyean Dotson. Oregon also has a post threat in 6-foot-11 center Tony Woods, who averages 10.9 points per game.

Here's a closer look at Cantu from the Register, as well as some thoughts from J.T. Terrell about his challenging times playing for O'Neill...

It was the first day of the spring semester at USC, and quite a day for the basketball team, as the Trojans fired Coach Kevin O'Neill and replaced him, on an interim basis, with longtime assistant coach Bob Cantu. Here's a rundown of the coverage from the Register...

USC's basketball team, and interim coach Bob Cantu, met at Galen Center this afternoon, and then Cantu and players were made available to reporters for interviews. Here's a sampling of player reaction to this morning's firing of Coach Kevin O'Neill...

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JIO FONTAN

(on his reaction to O'Neill's firing...)

FONTAN: ``The news today, decisions like those are made by those in the athletic department. The players, we just kind of roll with the punches and keep moving forward. It's a great opportunity for Coach Cantu and he's very well-prepared for this opportunity. We're going to stay as positive as we can.''